They Came...They Raced...They Conquered

BMW Team wins inaugural 8 Hours at Daytona

They say history repeats itself - and at the inaugural SunTrust Moto ST eight hour endurance race at Daytona International Speedway on October 21,2006 that is exactly what happened. Thanks to a brilliant effort by the BMW Motorcycles team, victory was achieved in dramatic, nail biting fashion as the team brought home the checkered flag. Not since Steve McLaughlin won the very first AMA Superbike race back in 1976 on an R 90 S, had a BMW team won at Daytona in an AMA sanctioned race.

This stunning victory was equally historic, all the more because it was not a national team, but a combined effort of three BMW dealers from different parts of the country. San Jose BMW led the team with their silver #46 R 1200 S, with additional technicians. transport and equipment from Mainline BMW and BMW of Atlanta. Two other BMW dealers. BMW Motorcycles of Daytona and Touring Sport BMW also fielded entries in the race.

In the Super Sport Twins-class, American riders Brian Parriott, Nate Kern, and Belgian Stephane Mertens grabbed the win aboard their stock #46 BMW R 1200 S. defeating the #l8 M4 EMGO Suzuki SV 1000S team by nearly fifteen seconds. The BMW team completed 228 laps of the 3.56-mile Daytona road course, racking up a total distance of 811.68 miles around the speedway's legendary high-banked turns. All three riders posted lap times within a second of each other; this consistency, combined with the expert pit crew and team planning under the direction of San Jose BMW owner Chris Hodgson and the legendary Udo Geitl, brought home the win.

"Everything went smoothly." Parriott commented. "The settings were perfect; tire wear was phenomenal and the times of our three riders were within a second of each other. I think that won the race for us."

The No. 32 Valley Racing Suzuki SV1000S ridden by Chuck Ivey, Josh Day and Frank Trombino completed the podium overall in the SST class, five laps behind the winners.

BMW's victory is particularly impressive given the fact that the M4 EMGO Suzuki team had twenty-five years of endurance racing experience. A pit mishap just over an hour into the race, however, cost them six laps, allowing the San Jose BMW team to grab a commanding lead, and one that they never relinquished.

For 172 laps, Parriott, Kern, and Mertens led the race, averaging 106 mph. As darkness fell with an hour and a half left in the contest, the Suzuki team had battled back to second place, and launched a furious charge to try and catch the BMW R 1200 S. Their efforts fell short. Trailing by thirty seconds with twenty-two minutes to go the Suzuki team made a final pit stop for a splash-and-go hit of fuel. They were unable to reach Parriott, who took the checkered flag under the speedway lights with one hand raised in triumph.

San Jose BMW had also battled back and forth for leading position with the #83 BMW Motorcycles of Daytona team early on, before a miscommunication between pit and rider caused the BMW Daytona team to run out of fuel on the back straightaway, costing them several laps. Still, the BMW Daytona team managed a fourth place finish, giving BMW Motorcycles two spots in the top five.

"To win at Daytona is something I will treasure for years to come," Mertens said, as the three riders stood on the podium at Victory lane with Steve McLaughlin standing nearby. "At last, BMW has achieved another win at Daytona," added Nate Kern, as the champagne was uncorked and the celebration began. "It's been a long time coming."

The BMW R 1200 S was raced totally stock, save for its Remus exhaust and its final drive, which was taken from an R 1200 RT and allowed for slightly taller gearing. Amazingly, the R 1200 S used less than four ounces of oil during the grueling eight-hour competition.

For more 8 Hours at Daytona race results, visit www.moto-st.com.

This feature originally appeared in November 2006 - Updated: 04/25/08